The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Vehicle article carrier systems that enable a pair of cross bars to be held in a stowed orientation when not needed for use, have enjoyed significant popularity in recent years. The assignee of the present disclosure is a leader in the manufacture of vehicle article carrier systems, and owns a number of U.S. patents directed to vehicle article carriers having stowable cross bars, namely: U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,096,454; 8,251,267; 6,811,066; 7,066,364; 7,090,103; 7,448,523; and 8,028,875, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference into the present application.
In certain regions, for example Europe, vehicle article carriers employing support rails which stretch along substantially an entire length of a roof of the vehicle, and which are known in the industry as “stretch bent rails”, are popular from an aesthetic standpoint. Typically two cross bars are then attached to a parallel pair of roof mounted stretch bent rails to enable articles to be supported above the roof of the vehicle. Stretch bent rails also provide a relatively low profile, and maintaining the low profile of the stretch rails is a highly desirable feature, both from an aesthetic standpoint and an aerodynamic standpoint.
When using stretch bent rails, there is a preference by some vehicle manufacturers that the end supports at opposite ends of the cross bars are able to be clamped onto portions of the stretch rails. However, configuring each of the end supports with a moveable jaw would typically result in an end support which is somewhat thicker than would be desired, and more difficult to hold in a stowed orientation while still being hidden from view when standing alongside the vehicle.